It doesn’t matter what type of coffee you brew, you’ll want to get the best out of your coffee beans. 

This can be done by practising your brew technique or maybe filtering your brew water. 

It’s also important to use the freshest possible coffee beans which are optimal for brewing. 

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This of course begs the question, how long do coffee beans last?

Hold your horses and let’s dive in

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How Long Do Coffee Beans Last?

I’m Tom and I have been working in the coffee industry for over 10 years, starting my journey as a barista in Australia, working on coffee farms in South America and roasting coffee in The UK.
Today I review and write about speciality coffee. I am the founder of Batch Coffee Club, which showcases the very best coffee from around the world.
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Factors affecting how long coffee beans last.

Before explaining exactly how long coffee beans last for, let’s just take a look at what affects the shelf life of coffee beans and a few pointers that may be a reason for the freshness of your coffee.

Roast Level has an influence on how long your coffee beans last.

The roasting process consists of heating raw coffee beans at a high temperature for a period of time (with many other factors thrown in).

The amount of time that the coffee is roasted dictates the roast profile of the coffee and we generally describe coffee as light, medium or dark roast.

Light roast coffee beans last longer than dark roasted (or over roasted coffee beans). This is because CO2 is escaping from light roasted coffee at a lower rate compared to darker roast coffee the lack of CO2 contributes to the decline in freshness of coffee

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Oxygen is coffee’s worst nightmare. As soon as coffee beans are in contact with oxygen the complex compounds begin to break down.

So coffee bean storage is a big factor in the length that coffee beans last. I recommend keeping your coffee in its packaging as long as possible (as long as it’s airtight) when opened, transfer to a coffee storage container or leave in the original packaging if it has an airtight seal.

How Long Do Coffee Beans Last?

Let’s explore how long three forms of coffee beans last. Firstly…

Green coffee beans

Green coffee beans otherwise known as raw coffee are purchased by coffee roasters by the kilo. They usually arrive at the coffee roastery in large hessian sacks with a plastic protective layer underneath. Green beans last much longer than they’re roasted counterparts.

Most green coffee beans that are ready to be roasted in specialty coffee roasteries are between 3 months to 9 months old. Green coffee beans can last over a year and beyond though and many roasters choose to purchase aged beans.

Roasted coffee beans

Roasted coffee beans have a much shorter lifespan.

First of all, if you are purchasing coffee beans that are freshly roasted, be sure to let them rest for a minimum of 5 days (this allows the CO2 to escape and the coffee’s nuances become more pronounced).

Depending on the type of coffee and the roast profile coffee can last up to 2 months before declining in flavour. After the amount of time the coffee beans are still ok to consume but the flavours of the coffee beans will gradually subside.

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Keeping coffee beans fresh is of course paramount as this timeframe will significantly decrease if the coffee beans are not in an airtight container.

Ground coffee

Ground coffee has an even shorter shelf life than whole beans. In fact as soon as the coffee is ground it starts to depreciate in quality. This is because the surface area of the coffee grounds is much larger so the oxygen breaks down the compounds quicker.

The finer the ground (for example espresso grind) the quicker the decline in flavour. I would recommend consuming the coffee as quickly as possible once it is ground. It is hard to put a number on shelf life for pre ground coffee as the quality is constantly declining but I would recommend consuming pre-ground coffee within 30 days of the roast.

How to tell your coffee beans have gone off.

Here are three signs that your coffee has gone off:

Sight. Take a look at the coffee beans and provided you purchased specialty coffee there should be very little (if any) oily surfaces. As coffee beans age the oil trapped inside the bean escapes onto the surface.

Smell. If the coffee smells overly bitter or flat then there is a good chance that the coffee beans have gone off. This is not always the case as the aroma of the coffee may have a bitter-like smell or be incredibly subtle at its optimal point.

Taste. This is the easiest way to spot whether your coffee beans have gone off (but of course you need to brew the coffee first). After a certain amount of time coffee bean oxidation has taken place which produces bitterness or sourness in the cup.

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